At first, we offered no translations at all. We thought it’s not necessary. Online translators became available. Finally, a client could hire a freelance translator for pennies.

Than we integrated an automated translationsystem (software providedby a Russian company called Promt) which made it possible to translate messages directly from CuteOnly’s Message Center with a single click.

The quality of translation wasn’t perfect and we wanted to improve it. There is a link in every man’s profile suggesting girls submit a better translation on the Russian website. Look for example at this profile. It’s got a link on the bottom which says “Wanna help us make a better translation?”. A girl can submit a manual translation by clicking it:

We updated the custom dictionary of Promt after analyzing these submissions manually. It was a big hit. Together we created the best automated translation system of that time for English/Russian/English translations.

It was before we switched to Google Translate. Once it launched out, it was better than anything. We switched to it a couple of years ago. At this time all CuteOnly translations are being carried by Google.

Translations have been always a big deal for the international dating. Only a few Russians speak fluent English, and even less foreigners speak Russian.

Some dating sites offer paid manual translations. They charge up to 8 dollars per message. That’s an astonishing amount. Sure, it’s good for business. This model generates around $160 per customer. Much more than ours. Sure it’s good for business, but not that good for a client’s wallet and violates the privacy of correspondence.

We decided to offer it charge-free; it’s been always free (since 2004). Sure we do need money, but charging per message limits the amount of mail and the less mail our customers send and receive the worse for the community in general.

This post looks like a self-promo, right? Next time we will continue in a different key. I promise.